Shulong Daojun

Bei Chen first bowed respectfully, and then said in a respectful voice, "I believe that the matter of Xuanfu Mountain was not the fault of the mountain god."

Yi Xuan's gaze remained calm and unwavering: "What do you mean?"

"The mountain god Fu Tu, whom I have long admired for his virtue and integrity, is diligent and conscientious in his duties. Among the righteous gods, he is known as an exemplary official."

After Bei Chen finished speaking, he paused briefly, and seeing that Yi Xuan did not stop him, he continued:

"Such virtuous gods should be the models of the righteous gods of the ten directions."

However, due to his pure and kind nature, he was deceived and misled by the mountain crocodile, thus committing an unintentional mistake, which I truly regret.

After speaking, he gently shook his head, a hint of pity on his face, then sighed and began to speak again:

"I once heard a story: There was once a candidate named Song Tao who took an exam and encountered a question that said, 'One person and two people, with heart and without heart.'"

The argument is that when a person's words and actions involve others, their motives—whether intentional or unintentional—should be used to judge their morality and responsibility.

Song Tao replied: If one intends to do good, one will not be rewarded even if it is good; if one does evil unintentionally, one will not be punished even if it is evil.

The gods praised it endlessly.

Therefore, there is a saying that "ignorance is no excuse."

At this point, Beichen bowed again.

He then looked around hesitantly, took a deep breath as if to bolster his courage, and then spoke loudly:

"This junior dares to speak frankly: when the gods judge merits and demerits, they only consider those who acted intentionally."

Therefore, the crime committed unintentionally or without knowledge is forgivable.

The mountain god carried the mud, without sin or fault.

After saying this, he bowed deeply, lowered his head and remained seated for a long time.

Among the ten righteous gods, there were also some whose merits and demerits were mixed. Their eyes flickered slightly, as if they were showing their approval.

On the high seat, Yi Xuan smiled but did not speak immediately. He closed his eyes slightly for a moment before slowly opening his mouth:

"Then, according to you, who is to blame for the incident at Xuanfu Mountain?"

Upon hearing this, Bei Chen straightened up, his gaze intense, and said with certainty, "This junior believes that the blame should be placed on that mountain crocodile!"

What kind of turtle in the world would eat stubborn rocks?

This mountain crocodile feeds turtles with stones and deliberately selects its species. This behavior is clearly intentional and malicious, and this is one transgression.

Then they were released to multiply in the mountains without any restraint, causing chaos in the region. This is the second mistake.

Intentionally deceiving the mountain god and obstructing the officials of heaven and earth from performing their duties and protecting the land and water is the third offense.

Each mistake is more serious than the last; this is truly a heinous crime!

Clearly overwhelmed with anger, Bei Chen took a long time to calm down.

He then bowed deeply and said, "I have been impolite."

Regarding the matter of Xuanfu Mountain, we hope that Your Excellency will investigate thoroughly and offer your wise judgment.

Upon hearing this, Yi Xuan's gaze fell on Bei Chen's face, and he paused slightly.

He then slowly turned to the crowd in front of the altar, seemingly deep in thought. After a moment, he finally settled his gaze on the head disciples of each lineage.

He had already heard about the matter of Xuanfu Mountain yesterday.

The mountain god, named Fu Tu, had also been seen once in the Hall of Merits and Demerits.

This matter has already been settled.

Miscellaneous schools of thought rarely produce earth immortals.

Even if there are one or two, they mostly gained their promotion by taking advantage of the position of the righteous god and relying on the power of incense offerings and vows.

It was merely a shortcut and a clever trick that led to its attainment.

Although these kinds of earth immortals possess a high level of cultivation, they are completely unaware of the fundamental principles of merit in their positions, let alone how merits and demerits are determined.

That's why a junior like Beichen emerged from the sect, uttering the word "think".

It's still a bit too shallow.

But what about the daily teachings of the head disciples of each lineage?

Has there been any slackening?

Thinking of this, Yi Xuan couldn't help but feel a desire to test him.

His gaze fell upon the figure in the green robe, and with a gentle smile, he spoke:

"Lin Shu, the chief disciple of the Dao Yi Tai Miao Zhen Sect, since you are also aware of this matter, please share your opinion."

Upon hearing this, Lin Shu looked slightly surprised, clearly not expecting that this matter would be brought up to him.

However, he still rose from the green cushion, bowed to Yi Xuan, pondered for a moment, and then slowly said:

"I have been studying Taoism since childhood. I received teachings from my master and took refuge in the Three Treasures of Tao, Scripture, and Master. After that, I understood the Tao, refined my skills, and eliminated my doubts."

The Daoist scriptures say: Those who deny the Great Dao and slander the true Dharma due to ignorance, this ignorance is a great sin.

The mountain god Fu Tu, though a righteous deity, was deceived by the mountain crocodile due to his ignorance, thus neglecting his duties.

Although he did not slander the true Dharma, this very "ignorance" is close to a sin.

As he said this, Lin Shu turned his gaze to Bei Chen behind him.

Upon catching a glimpse of the snake-shaped silk sash around his waist, he suddenly realized something.

This person must be the one who condensed the Dao embryo with the spiritual essence of the Xuan Snake.

Upon realizing this, Lin Shu immediately shook his head, a hint of confusion on his face, and spoke calmly to Bei Chen:

"As a disciple of Taoism, you must have diligently studied the Taoist scriptures and pondered their meaning. How could you defend the mountain god by claiming 'ignorance is no excuse'?"

Upon hearing this, Bei Chen's face turned deathly pale.

He opened his mouth to mumble, as if to offer a few words of explanation, but Lin Shu spoke again:

"The scriptures and their meanings are clear to us who cultivate the Way. If we do not know them, we are being foolish and lazy."

To claim ignorance when one knows is to deceive.

Since you are now defending the mountain god Fu Tu, then let me ask you—

Are you arguing without knowing your faults, or are you deliberately arguing even though you know they are wrong?

At this point, Lin Shu suddenly smiled faintly and said softly, "Bei Chen, are you foolish and lazy, or are you deceitful?"

A single word can pierce the heart.

Suddenly, a thick layer of cold sweat appeared on Bei Chen's forehead, and his body swayed violently, almost causing him to fall back onto the prayer mat.

Fortunately, the person next to him reacted quickly and helped him up, managing to keep him steady.

After three or four breaths, his eyes suddenly cleared, and he let out a long sigh, clearly having calmed his mind.

Before long, Bei Chen bowed slightly to Lin Shu and said softly, "Thank you for your guidance, Senior Brother Lin. My understanding was limited."

Upon hearing this, Lin Shu's eyes revealed a hint of surprise.

It's quite interesting that Bei Chen could say such things.

He had previously heard Zhang Ziling say that this man was quite cunning, so he just thought of him as a coward and didn't take him seriously.

Unexpectedly, this person still possessed some ambition and magnanimity.

Interesting, really interesting.

Lin Shu nodded slightly and chuckled, "It's alright. Now that you understand, it's a fortunate thing."

After saying that, he stopped paying attention and turned to Yi Xuan, cupping his hands in a gesture of respect, saying, "An unintentional mistake may be mitigated, but a dereliction of duty or negligence will ultimately be unforgivable."

However, the merits and demerits of the gods are judged by Heaven and Earth, and we, the disciples of the Dao, should simply abide by them.

Lin Shu did not elaborate on the matter of Xuanfu Mountain, whether the fault lay with the mountain god Fu Tu or with the mountain crocodile.

He knew in his heart that the truth of the matter would not change because of anyone's words.

Therefore, you only need to follow the rules.

From his high seat, Yi Xuan listened to Lin Shu's words and, observing his behavior and character, couldn't help but laugh and praise him:

How good!

Lin Shu, the chief disciple of the Dao Yi Tai Miao Zhen Men, is quite good.

"If you are indeed one of my Taiyi lineage, you resemble me in your prime. Not bad!"